His statement during the State of the Province Address (SOPA) comes after heavy criticism from different independent organisations and communities which called for the eradication of these pit latrines fearing for the safety of school pupils. Mokgoro says the eradicated pit latrines were in the Dr Kenneth Kaunda district, which include Klerksdorp, the Dr Ruth Segomotsi Mompati district, which includes Vryburg, and the Bojanala Platinum district, which included Rustenburg. 

He says all the pit latrines in the Ngaka Modiri Molema District will be completely eradicated from schools by the end of March 2021. Meanwhile, premier Mokgoro adds his provincial government aims to also eradicate asbestos which was used in several schools.

“Asbestos has been identified as a health hazard and we aim to eradicate it from all our schools. Full asbestos schools – those that were built entirely out of asbestos - have been eradicated completely and what is remaining are those schools with partial asbestos buildings, which are part of this programme, and we’ll be starting with the worse cases,” he adds.

Meanwhile, Mokgoro has vowed that to ensure the security of learners and teachers, 87 fencing projects have been completed and 27 are under construction.

He says the province will be providing 95 more schools with fencing in the 2021/22 financial year.

“Furthermore, in order to restore the dignity of our learners and educators, appropriate sanitation facilities have been provided. This include the eradication of pit latrines at 166 schools over the past two years,” Mokgoro further adds. 

Several incidents involving school violence in the province, where teachers and pupils were victims, were reported in the province. The Provincial Department of Education in the province also held a school safety summit in 2020 to address issues of violence at schools.

OFM News